'Tis the season

We wanted to give you some well-rounded tips for getting your business ready for Christmas and the end of the year so we have paired up with Veronica from More Than Your Brand to bring your our 6 top tips for helping your business get through the silly season!

Veronica's tips ...

Christmas time for many business owners is not always holly and jolly, it's stressful. In this digital world it can feel like we need to be 'switched-on' around the clock, not really a thought that will help you wind down and enjoy the holidays. So these are my top 3 tips for getting through while still staying in-touch with your clients and customers.

Update your Google & Facebook hours: If your business is listed on Google, or you have a Facebook Business Page then you most likely have your regular office hours listed. Make sure in the lead up to your Christmas break you update these hours so existing and potential new clients know when you will be back in the office. It's also a good idea to add a short paragraph on your website's homepage letting visitors know that you are closed for Christmas - just to cover all your bases!

Setup messenger bots on Facebook (and other social platforms): I'm not a huge fan of messenger bots normally, but for this time of year they can be very helpful. In the same way you will turn on your out-of-office message on your work email when you close the office for the year, setting an automatic response to your Facebook messages telling clients that you are currently closed for the holidays but will respond as soon as possible, ensures that no message goes unanswered and everyone is kept informed.

Pre-prepare your Christmas posts: It sounds like an obvious one but if you are planning on posting a Christmas message on your social media pages get it ready ahead of time. Save it as a draft or schedule the post so that you have one less thing to do on your last day at work for the year. You can even get your first few posts for 2019 ready so they are ready to go for the new year!

Eugene's tips ...

What is it about Christmas? The world doesn’t come to an end does it? So, to help you get by consider the following.

Make sure you apply the appropriate leave loading (where applicable): Most of us pay our team via computer programs these days, but make sure that the appropriate items have been ticked to reflect such items as leave loading, holiday pay, public holidays etc. An oversight here or there can lead to difficulty reconciling later in the year.

Clear communication: Make sure you update your emails, answering phone message, voicemails so that your clients know when you are on leave and when you will return. Your clients/customers won’t begrudge you a break!

Manage your workflow: Whilst we all would like to get everything done before Christmas, there are only so many hours in a day. Prioritise what has to be done beforehand and jobs/tasks that can’t be achieved prior to Christmas, let your client/customer know.

Veronica recently built our new website so we will be catching up with her again in the new year to discuss small business marketing - be sure to keep an eye out!